Data transmissions in control regions

ABSTRACT

According to some embodiments, a method in a wireless device comprises: receiving a control channel (e.g., physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)) that includes control information that indicates a set of time and frequency resources allocated for the wireless device to receive a data transmission; determining that the set of time and frequency resources allocated for data transmission overlaps with a control resource region (e.g., control resource set (CORESET)); and receiving the data transmission in the set of time and frequency resources allocated for data transmission. The control information may include a bitmap that indicates at one or more groups of time and frequency resources excluded/included for the data transmission region.

PRIORITY

This nonprovisional application is a U.S. National Stage Filing under 35U.S.C. § 371 of International Patent Application Serial No.PCT/IB2018/050739 filed Feb. 6, 2018 and entitled “DATA TRANSMISSIONS INCONTROL REGIONS” which claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/455,508 filed Feb. 6, 2017, both of which are herebyincorporated by reference in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Particular embodiments are directed to wireless communications and, moreparticularly, to transmission of user data in a control region.

BACKGROUND

Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) fifth generation (5G) NewRadio (NR) systems use physical downlink control channels (PDCCHs) fordownlink control information (DCI), e.g. downlink scheduling assignmentsand uplink scheduling grants. The PDCCHs are in general transmitted atthe beginning of a slot and relate to data in the same or a later slot(for mini-slots PDCCH can also be transmitted within a regular slot).Different formats (sizes) of the PDCCHs are possible to handle differentDCI payload sizes and different aggregation levels (i.e., different coderate for a given payload size).

A user equipment (UE) is configured (implicitly and/or explicitly) toblindly monitor (or search) for a number of PDCCH candidates ofdifferent aggregation levels and DCI payload sizes. Upon detecting avalid DCI message (i.e., the decoding of a candidate is successful, andthe DCI contains an identity (ID) the UE is to monitor) the UE followsthe DCI (e.g., receives the corresponding downlink data or transmits inthe uplink). The blind decoding process comes at a cost in complexity inthe UE but is required to provide flexible scheduling and handling ofdifferent DCI payload sizes.

NR includes specifications on how to configure control resource regionswhere the UE can monitor for PDCCH transmissions and how a UE can beconfigured with multiple control resource regions. Some of these controlregions may be used for sending common control messages that areintended for multiple UEs and some may be intended for UE-specificcontrol messages. A control region may serve both common and UE-specificcontrol messages. One difference in NR from long term evolution (LTE) isthat the carrier bandwidths may be larger. Thus, there are benefits ifthe control region does not span the entire bandwidth of the carrier.Therefore, control regions may be limited in time and in frequency.

Control regions are generally dimensioned to ensure that multiple UEscan be signaled within the region. To do this, statistical multiplexingmay be used where the number of UEs that are assigned to a controlregion to search for control messages is much greater than the resourceavailable in the control region. Therefore, the search spaces fordifferent UEs are randomized so that statistical multiplexing can beused to minimize the blocking probability when any particular UE needsto be scheduled. Therefore, control regions may be dimensioned to beable to signal PDCCHs for multiple UEs simultaneously and the number ofUEs that are assigned to monitor the control region is expected to begreater than the number of UEs that can simultaneously be signaled.

Furthermore, a UE may be configured with one or more control regions,which the UE monitors for the potential reception of one or more PDCCHs.The control regions for one UE or different UEs can, in principle,partly or fully overlap.

Existing solutions do not adequately handle situations where a UE isconfigured with multiple control regions. They also do not optimizesignaling complexity for various desired options to reuse controlresources.

SUMMARY

The embodiments described herein include signaling to the user equipment(UE) on three aspects that inform the UE how control region resourceshould be reused. These are the starting position of the datatransmission, the physical resource blocks in frequency that are usedfor data transmission and options on how to reuse unused resources inthe one or more control regions configured to the UE including theoption of not reusing any unused resources in the control regions.

Particular embodiments optimize the overhead of such signaling by usinga field with as few bits as possible and encoding the values for thefield with specific options for reuse of control resources as defined bythe above three aspects. Particular embodiments enable datatransmissions that need to be sent urgently with very low latency tooccur purely in one or more of the control regions defined for the UE.

According to some embodiments, a method in a network node comprisesdetermining one or more control resource regions (e.g., control resourceset (CORESET)) for a carrier. Each control resource region of the one ormore control resource regions comprises a set of time and frequencyresources. The method further comprises determining a control channelregion (e.g., physical downlink control channel (PDCCH)) in a firstcontrol resource region of the one or more control resource regions. Thecontrol channel region may comprise a subset of the time frequencyresources of the first control resource region. The method furthercomprises determining a data transmission region in at least one controlresource region of the one or more control resource regions, andsignaling the determined data transmission region to a wireless device.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprises asubset of the resources in the at least one control resource region. Thedata transmission region may exclude resources for the control channelregion.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprisesresources within the at least one control resource region and resourcesoutside of any of the one or more control resource regions. A frequencyrange of resources within the at least one control resource region maybe the same as a frequency range of the resources outside of any of theone or more control resource regions, or the frequency range may bedifferent than the frequency range of the resources outside of any ofthe one or more control resource regions.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region excludesresources outside of the at least one control resource region. The datatransmission region may comprise all resources in the at least onecontrol resource region.

In particular embodiments, signaling the determined data transmissionregion to the wireless device comprises signaling a bitmap. The bitmapindicates at least one of: one or more groups of time and frequencyresources used for the data transmission region; and one or more groupsof time and frequency resources excluded from the data transmissionregion.

In particular embodiments, signaling the determined data transmissionregion to the wireless device comprises signaling an identifier of atleast one control resource region. The identifier of the at least onecontrol resource region indicates at least one of: a control resourceregion used for the data transmission region, and a control resourceregion excluded from the data transmission region.

According to some embodiments, a network node comprises processingcircuitry. The processing circuitry is operable to determine one or morecontrol resource regions (e.g., CORESET) for a carrier. Each controlresource region of the one or more control resource regions comprises aset of time and frequency resources. The processing circuitry is furtheroperable to determine a control channel region (e.g., PDCCH) in a firstcontrol resource region of the one or more control resource regions. Thecontrol channel region may comprise a subset of the time frequencyresources of the first control resource region. The processing circuitryis further operable to determine a data transmission region in at leastone control resource region of the one or more control resource regions,and signal the determined data transmission region to a wireless device.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprises asubset of the resources in the at least one control resource region. Thedata transmission region may exclude resources for the control channelregion.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprisesresources within the at least one control resource region and resourcesoutside of any of the one or more control resource regions. A frequencyrange of resources within the at least one control resource region maybe the same as a frequency range of the resources outside of any of theone or more control resource regions, or the frequency range may bedifferent than the frequency range of the resources outside of any ofthe one or more control resource regions.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region excludesresources outside of the at least one control resource region. The datatransmission region may comprise all resources in the at least onecontrol resource region.

In particular embodiments, the processing circuitry is operable tosignal the determined data transmission region to the wireless device bysignaling a bitmap. The bitmap indicates at least one of: one or moregroups of time and frequency resources used for the data transmissionregion; and one or more groups of time and frequency resources excludedfrom the data transmission region.

In particular embodiments, the processing circuitry is operable tosignal the determined data transmission region to the wireless device bysignaling an identifier of at least one control resource region. Theidentifier of the at least one control resource region indicates atleast one of: a control resource region used for the data transmissionregion, and a control resource region excluded from the datatransmission region.

According to some embodiments, a method in a wireless device comprises:receiving a control channel (e.g., PDCCH) that includes controlinformation that indicates a set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for the wireless device to receive a data transmission;determining that the set of time and frequency resources allocated fordata transmission overlaps with a control resource region (e.g.,CORESET); and receiving the data transmission in the set of time andfrequency resources allocated for data transmission.

In particular embodiments, the set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission comprises a subset of the resources inthe control resource region. The set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission may exclude resources used for a controlchannel.

In particular embodiments, the set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission comprises resource within the controlresource region and resources outside of any control resource regions. Afrequency range of resources within the at least one control resourceregion may be the same as a frequency range of the resources outside ofany of the one or more control resource regions, or the frequency rangemay be different than the frequency range of the resources outside ofany of the one or more control resource regions.

In particular embodiments, the set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission excludes resources outside of thecontrol resource region. The set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission may comprise all resources in thecontrol resource region.

In particular embodiments, the control information includes a bitmap.The bitmap indicates at least one of: one or more groups of time andfrequency resources used for the data transmission region; and one ormore groups of time and frequency resources excluded from the datatransmission region.

In particular embodiments, the control information includes anidentifier of at least one control resource region. The identifier ofthe at least one control resource region indicates at least one of: acontrol resource region used for the data transmission, and a controlresource region excluded from the data transmission.

According to some embodiments, a wireless device comprises processingcircuitry. The processing circuitry is operable to: receive a controlchannel that includes control information that indicates of a set oftime and frequency resources allocated for the wireless device toreceive a data transmission; determine that the set of time andfrequency resources allocated for data transmission overlaps with acontrol resource region; and receive the data transmission in the set oftime and frequency resources allocated for data transmission.

According to some embodiments, a network node comprises a determiningmodule and a signaling module. The determining module is operable to:determine one or more control resource regions for a carrier. Eachcontrol resource region of the one or more control resource regions maycomprise a set of time and frequency resources. The determining moduleis further operable to: determine a control channel region in a firstcontrol resource region of the one or more control resource regions, anddetermine a data transmission region in at least one control resourceregion of the one or more control resource regions. The signaling moduleis operable to signal the determined data transmission region to awireless device.

According to some embodiments, a wireless device comprises a receivingmodule and a determining module. The receiving module is operable toreceive a control channel that includes control information thatindicates of a set of time and frequency resources allocated for thewireless device to receive a data transmission. The determining moduleis operable to determine that the set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission overlaps with a control resource region.The receiving module is further operable to receive the datatransmission in the set of time and frequency resources allocated fordata transmission.

Also disclosed is a computer program product. The computer programproduct comprises instructions stored on non-transient computer-readablemedia which, when executed by a processor, perform the steps of:determining one or more control resource regions for a carrier;determining a control channel region in a first control resource regionof the one or more control resource regions; determining a datatransmission region in at least one control resource region of the oneor more control resource regions, and signaling the determined datatransmission region to a wireless device.

Another computer program product comprises instructions stored onnon-transient computer-readable media which, when executed by aprocessor, perform the steps of: receiving a control channel thatincludes control information that indicates a set of time and frequencyresources allocated for the wireless device to receive a datatransmission; determining that the set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for data transmission overlaps with a control resource region;and receiving the data transmission in the set of time and frequencyresources allocated for data transmission.

Particular embodiments may exhibit some of the following technicaladvantages. For example, particular embodiments provide a flexible wayof maximizing data throughput by reusing unused resources in configuredcontrol regions. Particular embodiments provide a robust method forenabling low latency transmissions to be multiplexed with datatransmissions. Other technical advantages will be readily apparent toone skilled in the art from the following figures, description andclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the embodiments and their featuresand advantages, reference is now made to the following description,taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example wireless network,according to some embodiments;

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the controlresource set (CORESET) within the time and frequency region indicated bythe scheduled physical resource blocks (PRBs) and start symbol for data,according to a particular embodiment;

FIG. 3 illustrates another example of the reuse of resources in theCORESET only within the time and frequency region indicated by thescheduled PRBs and start symbol for data, according to a particularembodiment;

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETonly within the scheduled PRBs, according to a particular embodiment;

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETonly within the CORESET, according to a particular embodiment;

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the puncturing of resources reused fordata by one user equipment (UE) in the CORESET to transmit a physicaldownlink control channel (PDCCH) for another UE, according to aparticular embodiment;

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor data transmission without any resource allocation for datatransmission outside of the CORESET, according to a particularembodiment;

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor data transmission without any resource allocation for datatransmission outside of the CORESET in the symbol for which PDCCH wasreceived in, according to a particular embodiment;

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor uplink data without any resource allocation of data transmissionsoutside of the CORESET according to a particular embodiment;

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method in a networknode, according to some embodiments;

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method in a wirelessdevice, according to some embodiments;

FIG. 12A is a block diagram illustrating an example embodiment of awireless device;

FIG. 12B is a block diagram illustrating example components of awireless device;

FIG. 13A is a block diagram illustrating an example embodiment of anetwork node; and

FIG. 13B is a block diagram illustrating example components of a networknode.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) fifth generation (5G) NewRadio (NR) includes specifications on how to configure control resourceregions where a user equipment (UE) can monitor for physical downlinkcontrol channel (PDCCH) transmissions and how a UE can be configuredwith multiple control resource regions. Some of these control regionsmay be used for sending common control messages that are intended formultiple UEs and some may be intended for UE-specific control messages.A control region may serve both common and UE-specific control messages.One difference in NR from long term evolution (LTE) is that the carrierbandwidths may be larger. Thus, there are benefits seen in the controlregion not spanning the entire bandwidth of the carrier. Therefore,control regions may be limited in time and in frequency.

Control regions are generally dimensioned to ensure that multiple UEscan be signaled within the region. The search spaces for different UEsare randomized so that statistical multiplexing can be used to minimizethe blocking probability when any particular UE needs to be scheduled.In low load conditions, however, there may often be only one or two UEsthat are sent PDCCHs in a control region. These UEs may have datatransmitted in the remaining parts of the slot outside of the controlregion. In this situation, unused resources within the control regionare wasted. Therefore, reuse of the unused resources in the controlregion for data transmission to the scheduled UEs is desirable.

A CORESET is a control resource set that is configured to the UE. ACORESET is a set of REs that spans a set of physical resource blocks(PRBs) in frequency and orthogonal frequency division multiplexing(OFDM) symbols in time. A UE may be configured one or more CORESETswhich the UE should monitor for the potential reception of one or morePDCCHs. CORESETs for one UE or different UEs can in principle be(partly) overlapping. For simplicity, in the figures below it is assumedthat the CORESETs are not partly overlapping.

Existing solutions do not adequately deal with situations where a UE isconfigured with multiple control regions. They also do not optimizesignaling complexity for various desired options to reuse controlresources.

Particular embodiments obviate the problems described above and includesignaling to the UE on three aspects that informs the UE how controlregion resource should be reused. These are the starting position of thedata transmission, the physical resource blocks in frequency that areused for data transmission and options on how to reuse unused resourcesin the one or more control regions configured to the UE including theoption of not reusing any unused resources in the control regions.

Particular embodiments optimize the overhead of such signaling by usinga field with as few bits as possible and encoding the values for thefield with specific options for reuse of control resources as defined bythe above three aspects. Particular embodiments enable datatransmissions that must be sent urgently with very low latency to occurpurely in one or more of the control regions defined for the UE

Particular embodiments provide a flexible way of maximizing datathroughput by reusing unused resources in configured control regions.Particular embodiments provide a robust method for enabling low latencytransmissions to be multiplexed with data transmissions.

The following description sets forth numerous specific details. It isunderstood, however, that embodiments may be practiced without thesespecific details. In other instances, well-known circuits, structuresand techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure theunderstanding of this description. Those of ordinary skill in the art,with the included descriptions, will be able to implement appropriatefunctionality without undue experimentation.

References in the specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,”“an example embodiment,” etc., indicate that the embodiment describedmay include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, butevery embodiment may not necessarily include the particular feature,structure, or characteristic. Moreover, such phrases are not necessarilyreferring to the same embodiment. Further, when a particular feature,structure, or characteristic is described in connection with anembodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of oneskilled in the art to implement such feature, structure, orcharacteristic in connection with other embodiments, whether or notexplicitly described.

Particular embodiments are described with reference to FIGS. 1-11 of thedrawings, like numerals being used for like and corresponding parts ofthe various drawings. LTE is used throughout this disclosure as anexample cellular system, but the ideas presented herein may apply toother wireless communication systems as well.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example wireless network,according to a particular embodiment. Wireless network 100 includes oneor more wireless devices 110 (such as mobile phones, smart phones,laptop computers, tablet computers, MTC devices, or any other devicesthat can provide wireless communication) and a plurality of networknodes 120 (such as base stations or eNodeBs). Wireless device 110 mayalso be referred to as a UE. Network node 120 serves coverage area 115(also referred to as cell 115).

In general, wireless devices 110 that are within coverage of networknode 120 (e.g., within cell 115 served by network node 120) communicatewith network node 120 by transmitting and receiving wireless signals130. For example, wireless devices 110 and network node 120 maycommunicate wireless signals 130 containing voice traffic, data traffic,and/or control signals. A network node 120 communicating voice traffic,data traffic, and/or control signals to wireless device 110 may bereferred to as a serving network node 120 for the wireless device 110.Communication between wireless device 110 and network node 120 may bereferred to as cellular communication. Wireless signals 130 may includeboth downlink transmissions (from network node 120 to wireless devices110) and uplink transmissions (from wireless devices 110 to network node120).

Each network node 120 may have a single transmitter 140 or multipletransmitters 140 for transmitting signals 130 to wireless devices 110.In some embodiments, network node 120 may comprise a multi-inputmulti-output (MIMO) system. Similarly, each wireless device 110 may havea single receiver or multiple receivers for receiving signals 130 fromnetwork nodes 120 or other wireless devices 110.

Wireless signals 130 may include particular time and frequency resourcesallocated as control resources. The resources may be referred to as acontrol region. One example of time and frequency resources allocated ascontrol resources is a CORESET. Other embodiments may include othertypes of control regions.

In some embodiments, network node 120 may determine one or more controlresource regions (e.g., control resource set (CORESET)) for a carrier.Each control resource region comprises a set of time and frequencyresources (described by physical resource blocks, OFDM symbols,frequency range, etc.). Network node 120 may determine a control channelregion (e.g., PDCCH) in a control resource region. The control channelregion may comprise a subset of the time frequency resources of thefirst control resource region. Network node 120 may determine a datatransmission region in a control resource region. Network node 120 maysignal the determined data transmission region to wireless device 110.

Network node 120 may signal to wireless device 110 on three aspects thatinform wireless device 110 how a control region resource may be reused.These are the starting position of the data transmission, the physicalresource blocks in frequency that are used for data transmission, andoptions on how to reuse unused resources in the one or more controlregions configured to wireless device 110, including the option of notreusing any unused resources in the control regions.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprises asubset of the resources in the at least one control resource region. Thedata transmission region may exclude resources for the control channelregion.

In particular embodiments, network node 120 may signal the determineddata transmission region to wireless device 110 using a bitmap. Thebitmap may indicate time and frequency resources used for the datatransmission region, or time and frequency resources excluded from thedata transmission region. Other embodiments may use an identifier of atleast one control resource region to include or exclude with respect tothe data transmission region.

According to some embodiments, wireless device 110 receives a controlchannel (e.g., PDCCH) that includes control information that indicates aset of time and frequency resources allocated for the wireless device toreceive a data transmission. Wireless device 110 may determine that theset of time and frequency resources allocated for data transmissionoverlaps with a control resource region (e.g., CORESET). Wireless device110 may transmit or receive a data transmission in the set of time andfrequency resources allocated for data transmission.

Particular methods for using and reusing control resources are describedin more detail with respect to FIGS. 2-9.

In wireless network 100, each network node 120 may use any suitableradio access technology, such as long term evolution (LTE),LTE-Advanced, UMTS, HSPA, GSM, cdma2000, NR, WiMax, WiFi, and/or othersuitable radio access technology. Wireless network 100 may include anysuitable combination of one or more radio access technologies. Forpurposes of example, various embodiments may be described within thecontext of certain radio access technologies. However, the scope of thedisclosure is not limited to the examples and other embodiments coulduse different radio access technologies.

As described above, embodiments of a wireless network may include one ormore wireless devices and one or more different types of radio networknodes capable of communicating with the wireless devices. The networkmay also include any additional elements suitable to supportcommunication between wireless devices or between a wireless device andanother communication device (such as a landline telephone). A wirelessdevice may include any suitable combination of hardware and/or software.For example, in particular embodiments, a wireless device, such aswireless device 110, may include the components described with respectto FIG. 10 below. Similarly, a network node may include any suitablecombination of hardware and/or software. For example, in particularembodiments, a network node, such as network node 120, may include thecomponents described with respect to FIG. 11 below.

Various embodiments include signaling information. Portions of somesignaling may be known, such as that a PDCCH message may indicate theresources in frequency, i.e., the physical resource blocks (PRBs) thatare allocated for data transmission to the UE, and that a PDCCH messagemay indicate a starting symbol for data transmissions. The embodimentsdescribed herein, however, also include methods to reuse unusedresources in the control resource regions (e.g., CORESETs) configured tothe UE for the purpose of data reception and transmission. Althoughexamples herein as described in terms of a CORESET, the examples andembodiments apply to any control resource region, or any other definedresource region.

A first group of embodiments include interpretation of starting symbolfor data transmissions. In some embodiments, the starting symbol fordata transmissions is applicable only to PRBs that are fully outside anycontrol resource regions (e.g., CORESETs) configured to the UE. That is,unless otherwise indicated by methods outlined in the embodiments below,the UE assumes that the data transmission (PDSCH) is mapped to the REsin time and frequency indicated by the allocated PRBs and the startingsymbol, but excluding any REs that are part of control resource regions(e.g., CORESETs) configured to the UE.

A second group of embodiments include control region reuse to avoidresources on which a UE receives a control channel (e.g., PDCCH). Theresources in the control resource region that are reused for datatransmission do not include the resources on which a PDCCH has beenreceived. In other words, this group of embodiments is similar to thefirst group of embodiments in the sense that the UE follows the resourceallocation given by the starting symbol and RBs in the frequency domain,but instead of excluding all REs in the entire control resource region(e.g., CORESET) from the allocation, only the REs upon which the UEdetected a control channel (e.g., PDCCH) are excluded.

A third group of embodiments include control region reuse within a timeand frequency region indicated by scheduled PRBs and start symbol fordata. The resources in the control region are only reused within thetime and frequency region indicated by the scheduled PRBs and startsymbol for data. This is illustrated in FIG. 2 where a UE receives aPDCCH in a CORESET, but the UE is scheduled to transmit PRBs onlyspanning a part of the CORESET bandwidth.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETonly within the time and frequency region indicated by the scheduledPRBs and start symbol for data, according to a particular embodiment.The illustrated example includes a transmission time interval comprisinga plurality of OFDM symbols 42. The transmission time interval includescontrol resource regions 10 (e.g., 10 a and 10 b), a control channel 12,and data transmission region 14.

The UE receiving control channel 12 (e.g., PDCCH 12) for scheduled datatransmission region 14 a is configured with two control resource regions10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a). Control resource region 10 a comprises twogroups of PRBs in the first two OFDM symbols. Control resource region10B comprises one group of PRBs in the first two OFDM symbols. A networknode, such as network node 120 described above, may use control resourceregions 10 for sending control channels to a UE, such as wireless device110 described above. For example, network node 120 may send controlchannel 12 to wireless device 110 to schedule a downlink transmission(e.g., PDCCH with DCI).

The scheduling information for the downlink transmission indicates tothe UE which time and frequency resources will be used for the downlinktransmission. The time and frequency resources are represented by datatransmission region 14. In the illustrated example, data transmissionregion 14 starts at the first OFDM symbol and continues in each OFDMsymbol of the transmission time interval. The frequency range of theresources allocated for data transmission is the same inside controlresource region 10 a as outside control resource region 10 a. Theportion of data transmission region 14 inside control resource region 10a does not overlap with control channel region 12.

FIG. 3 illustrates another example of the reuse of resources in theCORESET only within the time and frequency region indicated by thescheduled PRBs and start symbol for data, according to a particularembodiment. The illustrated example includes a transmission timeinterval comprising a plurality of OFDM symbols 42, control resourceregions 10, control channels 12 and 16, and data transmission regions 14and 18.

A first UE receiving control channel 12 (e.g., PDCCH 12) for scheduleddata transmission region 14 is configured with two control resourceregions 10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a) in the first two OFDM symbols. Asecond UE receiving control channel 16 (e.g., PDCCH 16) for scheduleddata transmission region 18 is also configured with two control resourceregions 10 a CORESETs 10 a) in the first two OFDM symbols. For example,network node 120 may send control channel 12 (e.g., PDCCH 12) thatincludes downlink control information to a first wireless device 110 toschedule a downlink transmission in the time and frequency resourcesrepresented by data transmission region 14. Network node 120 may sendcontrol channel 16 (e.g., PDCCH 16) that includes downlink controlinformation to a second wireless device 110 to schedule a downlinktransmission in the time and frequency resources represented by datatransmission region 18.

In the illustrated example, data transmission region 14 starts at thefirst OFDM symbol and continues in each OFDM symbol of the transmissiontime interval. Data transmission region 14 also starts at the first OFDMsymbol and continues in each OFDM symbol of the transmission timeinterval, but uses different frequency resources than data transmissionregion 14.

In the illustrated example, the frequency range of the resourcesallocated for data transmission is different inside control resourceregion 10 a than outside control resource region 10 a. The frequencyrange of the resources allocated for data transmission is the sameinside control resource region 10 b as outside control resource region10 b. The portion of data transmission region 14 inside control resourceregion 10 a excludes control channel region 12. The portion of datatransmission region 18 inside control resource region 10 a excludescontrol channel region 16.

A fourth group of embodiments includes control region reuse independentof a frequency region indicated by scheduled PRBs. The resources in thecontrol region are reused independent of the frequency region indicatedby the scheduled PRBs. This is illustrated in FIG. 4, where a UEreceives a PDCCH in a CORESET, but the UE is scheduled to receive datain PRBs only spanning a part of the CORESET bandwidth. According to thisembodiment, the resources in the CORESET are fully reused including inthe PRBs that fall outside of the frequency region of the scheduled PRBsfor data reception.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETonly within the scheduled PRBs, according to a particular embodiment.The illustrated example includes a transmission time interval comprisinga plurality of OFDM symbols 42, control resource regions 10, controlchannel 12, and data transmission region 14, similar to those describedwith respect to FIG. 2.

A UE receiving control channel 12 (e.g., PDCCH 12) for scheduled datatransmission region 14 is configured with two control resource regions10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a) in the first two OFDM symbols. In theillustrated example, the frequency range of the resources allocated fordata transmission is different inside control resource region 10 a thanoutside control resource region 10 a. For example, the frequency domainbandwidth of control resource region 10 a is larger than the bandwidthused for the portion of data transmission region 14 that is outside ofcontrol resource region 10 a. Within control resource 10 a, datatransmission region 14 uses the entire bandwidth of control resourceregion 10 a (excluding resources used for control channel region 12).

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETonly within the CORESET, according to a particular embodiment. Theillustrated example includes a transmission time interval comprising aplurality of OFDM symbols 42, control resource regions 10, controlchannels 12 and 16, and data transmission regions 14 and 18, similar tothose described with respect to FIG. 3.

A UE receiving control channel 12 (e.g., PDCCH 12) for scheduled datatransmission region 14 is configured with two control resource regions10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a) in the first two OFDM symbols. In theillustrated example, the frequency range of the resources allocated fordata transmission is different inside control resource region 10 a thanoutside control resource region 10 a.

For example, the frequency domain bandwidth of control resource region10 a is smaller than the bandwidth used for the portion of datatransmission region 14 that is outside of control resource region 10 a.Similarly, the frequency domain bandwidth of control resource region 10a is smaller than the bandwidth used for the portion of datatransmission region 18 that is outside of control resource region 10 a.Within control resource 10 a, data transmission regions 14 and 18 usethe entire bandwidth of control resource region 10 a (excludingresources used for control channel regions 12 and 16).

A fifth group of embodiments include puncturing data resources reused ina control region by one UE to transmit PDCCH for another UE. Two UEs mayreceive PDCCH messages within CORESETs that may be partially or fullyoverlapping. Each UE assumes that the resources used for PDCCHtransmission for the other UE is part of its own data transmission. ThegNB adjusts for the loss in performance due to such puncturing byadjusting the coding rate of the PDSCH transmissions to each UE. This isillustrated in FIG. 6, where the resources used for the PDCCH for one ofthe UEs (e.g., control channel 12) are assumed to be data REs by theother UE (whose PDCCH and data transmissions are illustrated by controlchannel 16 and data transmission region 18, respectively).

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the puncturing of resources reused fordata by one UE in the CORESET to transmit PDCCH for another UE,according to a particular embodiment. The illustrated example includes atransmission time interval comprising a plurality of OFDM symbols 42,control resource regions 10, control channels 12 and 16, and datatransmission regions 14 and 18, similar to those described above.

Two UEs receiving control channels 12 and 16 (e.g., PDCCHs 12 and 16)for scheduled data (e.g., data transmission regions 14 and 18) areconfigured with two control resource regions 10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a)in the first two OFDM symbols each that are fully overlapped.

Data transmission region 14 starts at the third OFDM symbol andcontinues to the end of the transmission time interval. Datatransmission region 14 does not include time and frequency resourceswithin control resource regions 10. Data transmission region 18 startsat the first OFDM symbol and continues to the end of the transmissiontime interval. Data transmission region 18 includes time and frequencyresources within control resource regions 10 a and 10 b. Within controlresource region 10 a, data transmission region 18 excludes controlresource region 16, but does not exclude control resource region 12.

A sixth group of embodiments include reuse of control region resourcesfor data without any scheduled data outside of the control region. Theentire data transmission is contained within one or more of the CORESETsconfigured to the UE. For example, a UE may receive a PDCCH without anyREs allocated for data in the region outside the CORESETs but with afield indicating reuse of control region resources for data. The UE maythen receive data only in resources within the CORESET Where the PDCCHwas received and also possibly in the other configured CORESETsdepending on what is indicated in the field in the control messagetransmitted by the gNB. This is illustrated in FIG. 7.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor data transmission without any resource allocation for datatransmission outside of the CORESET, according to a particularembodiment. The illustrated example includes a transmission timeinterval comprising a plurality of OFDM symbols 42, control resourceregions 10, control channels 12 and 16, and data transmission regions 14and 18, similar to those described above.

A UE with PDCCH and a scheduled data transmission is illustrated ascontrol channel 12 and data transmission region 14, respectively. TwoUEs receiving control channels 12 and 16 (e.g., PDCCHS 12 and 16) forscheduled data (e.g., data transmission regions 14 and 18) areconfigured with two control resource regions 10 a (e.g., CORESETs 10 a)in the first two OFDM symbols each that are fully overlapped.

Data transmission region 18 starts at the first OFDM symbol andcontinues to the end of the transmission time interval. Datatransmission region 18 includes time and frequency resources withincontrol resource regions 10 a and 10 b (excluding control channel region16). Data transmission region 14 only includes time and frequencyresources within control resource regions 10 a (excluding time andfrequency resources of control resource region 12.

In a feature of this embodiment, the gNB may configure multiple CORESETsto the UE for the express purpose of such data transmissions in some ofthe CORESETs which may be useful to serve traffic that needs to meetvery low latency requirements and that may need to be sent in aparticular slot even when there are other UEs that may be scheduled inthat slot either via PDCCHs received in the same slot or from previousslots.

In another feature of this embodiment, modulation and coding scheme(MCS) to transport block size (TBS) mappings may be defined specificallyfor data transmissions that occur only in CORESETs as shown in the abovefigure. Hybrid ARQ can be used for these transmissions with the HARQ IDsto be used for such data transmissions being sent in the DCI message.

In a further feature of the embodiment, additional self-contained DMRSis included in the CORESET for the data transmission within the CORESETonly. One nonlimiting embodiment is to insert DMRS patterns andlocations consistent with those for the PDCCH.

A seventh group of embodiments include reuse of control region resourcesfor data without any scheduled data outside of the control region in thesame symbol as PDCCH. The entire data transmission may be containedwithin one or more of the CORESETs configured to the UE. For example, aUE may receive a PDCCH without any REs allocated for data in the regionoutside the CORESETs but with a field indicating reuse of control regionresources for data in the same symbol as the one which PDCCH was found.An example is illustrated in FIG. 8.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor data transmission without any resource allocation for datatransmission outside of the CORESET in the symbol for which PDCCH wasreceived in, according to a particular embodiment. The illustratedexample includes a transmission time interval comprising a plurality ofOFDM symbols 42, control resource regions 10, control channels 12 and16, and data transmission regions 14 and 18, similar to those describedabove.

A first UE with PDCCH and a scheduled data transmission is illustratedas control channel 12 and data transmission region 14, respectively. Asecond UE with PDCCH and a scheduled data transmission is illustrated ascontrol channel 16 and data transmission region 18, respectively.

Two UEs receiving PDCCHs (e.g., control channels 12 and 16) forscheduled data (e.g., data transmission regions 14 and 18) areconfigured with two control resource regions 10 a CORESETs 10 a) in thefirst two OFDM symbols each that are fully overlapped.

Data transmission region 14 consists of the first OFDM symbol andincludes the bandwidth of control resource region 10 a (excluding thetime and frequency resources of control resource region 12). Datatransmission region 18 consists of the second OFDM symbol and includesthe bandwidth of control resource region 10 a (excluding the time andfrequency resources of control resource region 16).

An eighth group of embodiments include joint encoding of starting timeand control region reuse options. The frequency region may be split intoa number of (possibly non-equally sized) regions. For each region,signaling informs the UE whether REs in that frequency region during theOFDM symbols spanned by a CORESET should be excluded from a resourceallocation or not. It has some similarity with the first group ofembodiments, but instead of excluding a CORESET, regions indicated bythe gNB are excluded. One benefit is that the gNB can signal to the UEto exclude also resources the gNB knows overlaps with other users'CORESETs.

For example, the frequency region can be split into four quarters, each¼ of the total bandwidth. A bitmap can be used to indicate whether aparticular quarter is to be excluded from a resource allocation or not.

A ninth group of embodiments include joint encoding of starting time andcontrol region reuse options. A single field may be used to indicate theOFDM symbol at which data starts and how the control regions configuredto the UE should be reused for data transmission. An example of theencoding for the values of such a single field is described below wherethree bits are used. In the following, CORESET refers to the controlregion where the PDCCH message is received.

-   000: Start symbol is after the CORESET for all the scheduled PRBs    AND all REs outside of PDCCH in scheduled CORESET in the scheduled    PRBs are used for data-   001: Start symbol is 0 for all the scheduled PRBs AND all REs    outside of PDCCH in scheduled CORESET in the scheduled PRBs are used    for data-   010: Start symbol is 1 for all the scheduled PRBs AND all REs    outside of PDCCH in scheduled CORESET are used for data-   011: Start symbol is after the CORESET for all the scheduled PRBs    AND all REs outside of PDCCH in all CORESETs configured to the UE    are used for data-   100: Start symbol is after the CORESET for all the scheduled PRBs    AND all REs outside of PDCCH in scheduled CORESET excluding the    first symbol of the CORESET are used for data-   101: Start symbol is after the CORESET for all the scheduled PRBs    AND no REs in any configured CORESET are used for data-   110: Data is transmitted only in the scheduled CORESET and REs    outside of PDCCH are used for data-   111: Start symbol is after the CORESET for all the scheduled PRBs    AND all REs outside of PDCCH in scheduled CORESET are used for data

A tenth group of embodiments include explicit use of bit maps toindicate reuse of resources in the OFDM symbols spanning the controlregion. Specific groups of resources in the OFDM symbols spanning thecontrol region where the configured CORESETs reside may be assignedseparate bits to indicate whether these resources are part of the dataallocation or not. The regions that may be assigned bits include thefollowing:

-   1) REs in the CORESET that are in OFDM symbols other than the ones    where the PDCCH scheduling data was received;-   2) REs in the CORESET that are in the OFDM symbols where the PDCCH    scheduling data was received;-   3) REs in the scheduled PRBs but outside of the CORESET in a    particular OFDM symbol.

An eleventh group of embodiments include use of control resource set foruplink transmission. The entire data transmission may be containedwithin one or more CORESETs configured to the UE for uplinktransmission. In another example, the entire data transmission iscontained outside one or more or all CORESETs configured to the UE foruplink transmission. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, in aprevious slot the DCI message can schedule downlink transmission in thenext slot starting from a symbol different from the first symbol in thatslot. Also, an uplink grant in the previous slot can indicate uplinktransmission in the next slot prior to the downlink transmission.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example of the reuse of resources in the CORESETfor uplink data without any resource allocation of data transmissionsoutside of the CORESET, according to a particular embodiment. Theillustrated example includes a transmission time interval comprising aplurality of OFDM symbols, control resource regions 10, control channels12, 16 and 20, and data transmission regions 14, 18 and 22.

A network node, such as network node 120, may use control resourceregions 10 for sending control channels to a UE, such as wireless device110. For example, network node 120 may send control channel 12 towireless device 110 to schedule an uplink transmission (e.g., PDCCH withDCI).

As one example, a UE receiving control channel 20 in control resourceregion 10 b reuses resources in the next control resource region 10 b(e.g., CORESET 10 b) (indicated by arrow 22) for uplink data (e.g., datatransmission region 22) without any resources allocated for datatransmissions outside of control resource region 10 b (e.g., CORESET 10b). The UEs in slot n+1 receive the scheduling information in theprevious slot n. For example, control channel regions 12 and 16 includescheduling for slot n and slot n+1 (as illustrated by the arrows in FIG.9).

The above embodiments may be combined as well. For example, group ofembodiments 7 and 8 may be used as methods to enable the techniques inthe earlier embodiments.

The embodiments above may include multiple PDDCHs transmission for a UEas well as other transmissions such as broadcast channels andsynchronization signal monitored by a UE in a control resource sets. Allresources known to the UE that are used for something other than userdata transmissions are considered as used resources in a controlresource set.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method in a networknode, according to some embodiments. In particular embodiments, one ormore steps of FIG. 10 may be performed by network node 120 of wirelessnetwork 100 described with respect to FIG. 1.

The method begins at step 1062, where the network node determines one ormore control resource regions for a carrier. For example, network node120 may determine one or more CORESETs (or any other suitable controlresource) control resource regions 10 illustrated with respect to FIGS.2-9) on which it may transmit control information to one or morewireless devices 110. Network node 120 may determine control resourceregion 10 dynamically (e.g., such as receiving signaling or othercommunications from another component of network 100), or network node120 may be provisioned or pre-configured with information about one ormore control resource regions.

At step 1064, the network node determines a control channel region in afirst control resource region of the one or more control resourceregions. For example, network node 120 may determine a PDCCH (e.g.,control channels 12, 16 or 18 illustrated with respect to FIGS. 2-9) inthe control resource region for transmitting control information towireless device 110.

The control channel may comprise a subset of the time and frequencyresources that comprise the control resource region. The remaining timeand frequency resources may be used for another control channel, usedfor data transmission, or unused.

Network node 120 may determine the control channel region dynamically(e.g., such as receiving signaling or other communications from anothercomponent of network 100), or network node 120 may be provisioned orpre-configured with information about one or more control channelregions.

At step 1066, the network node determines a data transmission region inat least one control resource region of the one or more control resourceregions. For example, network node 120 may determine that controlresource region 10 includes unused resources (i.e., resources not usedfor a control channel or for data transmission). Network node 120 maydetermine that some or all of these resources may be used for datatransmission. In some embodiments, network node 120 may determine thatsome used resources (e.g., a control channel for a lower priority useror service may be punctured for higher priority data transmission).

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprises asubset of the resources in the at least one control resource region. Anexample is illustrated in FIG. 2 where data transmission region 14includes a subset of resources in control resource region 10 a. The datatransmission region may exclude resources for the control channelregion. For example, with respect to FIG. 2, data transmission region 14excludes control channel region 12. As another example, with respect toFIG. 3, data transmission region 14 includes all the resources ofcontrol region 10 a except for the resources used by control channelregion 12.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprisesresources within the at least one control resource region and resourcesoutside of any of the one or more control resource regions. For example,FIGS. 2-6 all illustrates data transmission regions 14 and/or 18 thatincludes resources both within and outside of control resource region10.

A frequency range of resources within the at least one control resourceregion may be the same as a frequency range of the resources outside ofany of the one or more control resource regions (e.g., data transmissionregion 14 of FIG. 2), or the frequency range may be different than thefrequency range of the resources outside of any of the one or morecontrol resource regions (e.g., data transmission region 14 of FIG. 3).

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region excludesresources outside of the at least one control resource region (e.g.,data transmission region 14 of FIG. 7 is included entirely withincontrol resource region 10 a). The data transmission region may compriseall resources in the at least one control resource region (e.g., datatransmission region 18 of FIG. 7 includes all the resources of controlresource region 10 b). The network node may determine the datatransmission region according to any of the embodiments or examplesdescribed herein (e.g., with respect to FIGS. 2-9).

At step 1068, the network node signals the determined data transmissionregion to a wireless device. For example, network node 120 may signalthe determined data transmission region to wireless device 110.

In some embodiments, the signaling may include a starting symbol and anumber of symbols for data transmission. The signaling may include afrequency range. The signaling may include resource regions excludedfrom the data transmission region.

In some embodiments, the wireless device may determine the excludedregions implicitly based on predetermined rules or known controlregions. In some embodiments, the network node may explicitly signalexcluded resource regions.

In particular embodiments, signaling the determined data transmissionregion to the wireless device comprises signaling a bitmap. The bitmapmay indicate one or more groups of time and frequency resources used forthe data transmission region, and/or one or more groups of time andfrequency resources excluded from the data transmission region.

In particular embodiments, signaling the determined data transmissionregion to the wireless device comprises signaling an identifier of atleast one control resource region. The identifier of the at least onecontrol resource region indicates a control resource region used for thedata transmission region, and/or a control resource region excluded fromthe data transmission region. The network node may signal the datatransmission region according to any of the embodiments or examplesdescribed herein (e.g., with respect to FIGS. 2-9).

Modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to method 1000.Additionally, one or more steps in method 100 of FIG. 1 may be performedin parallel or in any suitable order. The steps of method 1000 may berepeated over time as necessary.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating an example method in a wirelessdevice, according to some embodiments. In particular embodiments, one ormore steps of FIG. 11 may be performed by wireless device 110 ofwireless network 100 described with respect to FIG. 1.

The method begins at step 1162, where the wireless device receives acontrol channel that includes control information that indicates a setof time and frequency resources allocated for the wireless device toreceive a data transmission. For example, wireless device 110 mayreceive a control channel (e.g., PDCCH) from network node 120).

At step 1164, the wireless device determines that the set of time andfrequency resources allocated for data transmission overlaps with acontrol resource region. For example, wireless device 110 may determinethat a data transmission region includes resources of one or morecontrol resource regions 10.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprises asubset of the resources in the at least one control resource region. Anexample is illustrated in FIG. 2 where data transmission region 14includes a subset of resources in control resource region 10 a. The datatransmission region may exclude resources for the control channelregion. For example, with respect to FIG. 2, data transmission region 14excludes control channel region 12. As another example, with respect toFIG. 3, data transmission region 14 includes all the resources ofcontrol region 10 a except for the resources used by control channelregion 12.

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region comprisesresources within the at least one control resource region and resourcesoutside of any of the one or more control resource regions. For example,FIGS. 2-6 all illustrates data transmission regions 14 and/or 18 thatincludes resources both within and outside of control resource region10.

A frequency range of resources within the at least one control resourceregion may be the same as a frequency range of the resources outside ofany of the one or more control resource regions (e.g., data transmissionregion 14 of FIG. 2), or the frequency range may be different than thefrequency range of the resources outside of any of the one or morecontrol resource regions (e.g., data transmission region 14 of FIG. 3).

In particular embodiments, the data transmission region excludesresources outside of the at least one control resource region (e.g.,data transmission region 14 of FIG. 7 is included entirely withincontrol resource region 10 a). The data transmission region may compriseall resources in the at least one control resource region (e.g., datatransmission region 18 of FIG. 7 includes all the resources of controlresource region 10 b). The network node may determine the datatransmission region according to any of the embodiments or examplesdescribed herein (e.g., with respect to FIGS. 2-9).

In some embodiments, the wireless device may determine that particularregions of the data transmission are excluded implicitly based onpredetermined rules or known control regions. In some embodiments,network node 120 may explicitly signal excluded resource regions towireless device 110.

For example, in particular embodiments, network node 120 may signal thedetermined data transmission region to wireless device 110 with abitmap. The bitmap may indicate one or more groups of time and frequencyresources used for the data transmission region, and/or one or moregroups of time and frequency resources excluded from the datatransmission region.

In another example, network node 120 may signal the determined datatransmission region to wireless device 110 with an identifier of atleast one control resource region. The identifier of the at least onecontrol resource region indicates a control resource region used for thedata transmission region, and/or a control resource region excluded fromthe data transmission region. The network node may signal the datatransmission region according to any of the embodiments or examplesdescribed herein (e.g., with respect to FIGS. 2-9).

At step 1166, the wireless device receives/transmits the datatransmission in the set of time and frequency resources allocated fordata transmission. For example, wireless device 110 may receive a datatransmission from network node 120 in the set of time and frequencyresources allocated for data transmission. Wireless device 110 may knowto ignore particular regions excluded from the data transmission region.

Modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to method 1100.Additionally, one or more steps in method 1100 of FIG. 11 may beperformed in parallel or in any suitable order. The steps of method 1100may be repeated over time as necessary.

FIG. 12A is a block diagram illustrating an example embodiment of awireless device. The wireless device is an example of the wirelessdevices 110 illustrated in FIG. 1. In particular embodiments, thewireless device is capable of transmitting/receiving user data within acontrol resource region (e.g., CORESET).

Particular examples of a wireless device include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a portable computer (e.g.,laptop, tablet), a sensor, a modem, a machine type (MTC) device/machineto machine (M2M) device, laptop embedded equipment (LEE), laptop mountedequipment (LME), USB dongles, a device-to-device capable device, avehicle-to-vehicle device, or any other device that can provide wirelesscommunication. The wireless device includes transceiver 1010, processingcircuitry 1020, memory 1030, and power source 1040. In some embodiments,transceiver 1010 facilitates transmitting wireless signals to andreceiving wireless signals from wireless network node 120 (e.g., via anantenna), processing circuitry 1020 executes instructions to providesome or all of the functionality described herein as provided by thewireless device, and memory 1030 stores the instructions executed byprocessing circuitry 1020. Power source 1040 supplies electrical powerto one or more of the components of wireless device 110, such astransceiver 1010, processing circuitry 1020, and/or memory 1030.

Processing circuitry 1020 includes any suitable combination of hardwareand software implemented in one or more integrated circuits or modulesto execute instructions and manipulate data to perform some or all ofthe described functions of the wireless device. In some embodiments,processing circuitry 1020 may include, for example, one or morecomputers, one more programmable logic devices, one or more centralprocessing units (CPUs), one or more microprocessors, one or moreapplications, and/or other logic, and/or any suitable combination of thepreceding. Processing circuitry 1020 may include analog and/or digitalcircuitry configured to perform some or all of the described functionsof wireless device 110. For example, processing circuitry 1020 mayinclude resistors, capacitors, inductors, transistors, diodes, and/orany other suitable circuit components. Processing circuitry 1020 mayperform any of the steps of the method claims below.

Memory 1030 is generally operable to store computer executable code anddata. Examples of memory 1030 include computer memory (e.g., RandomAccess Memory (RAM) or Read Only Memory (ROM)), mass storage media(e.g., a hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., a Compact Disk (CD)or a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), and/or or any other volatile ornon-volatile, non-transitory computer-readable and/orcomputer-executable memory devices that store information.

Power source 1040 is generally operable to supply electrical power tothe components of wireless device 110. Power source 1040 may include anysuitable type of battery, such as lithium-ion, lithium-air, lithiumpolymer, nickel cadmium, nickel metal hydride, or any other suitabletype of battery for supplying power to a wireless device. In particularembodiments, processing circuitry 1020 in communication with transceiver1010 receives user data within a control resource region (e.g.,CORESET).

Other embodiments of the wireless device may include additionalcomponents (beyond those shown in FIG. 12A) responsible for providingcertain aspects of the wireless device's functionality, including any ofthe functionality described above and/or any additional functionality(including any functionality necessary to support the solution describedabove).

FIG. 12B is a block diagram illustrating example components of awireless device 110. The components may include receiving module 1050and determining module 1052.

Receiving module 1050 may perform the receiving functions of wirelessdevice 110. For example, receiving module 1050 may receive a controlchannel that includes control information that indicates of a set oftime and frequency resources allocated for wireless device 110 toreceive a data transmission. Receiving module 1050 may receive thecontrol channel and control information according to any of the examplesand embodiments described above (e.g., step 1162 of FIG. 11). Receivingmodule 1050 may receive a data transmission in the set of time andfrequency resources (e.g., step 1166 of FIG. 11). In certainembodiments, receiving module 1050 may include or be included inprocessing circuitry 1020. In particular embodiments, receiving module1050 may communicate with determining module 1052.

Determining module 1052 may perform the determining functions ofwireless device 110. For example, determining module 1052 may determinethat the set of time and frequency resources allocated for datatransmission overlaps with a control resource region, according to anyof the examples and embodiments described above (e.g., step 1164 of FIG.11). In certain embodiments, determining module 1052 may include or beincluded in processing circuitry 1020. In particular embodiments,determining module 1052 may communicate with receiving module 1050.

FIG. 13A is a block diagram illustrating an example embodiment of anetwork node. The network node is an example of the network node 120illustrated in FIG. 1. In particular embodiments, the network node iscapable of transmitting user data within a control resource region(e.g., CORESET).

Network node 120 can be an eNodeB, a nodeB, a base station, a wirelessaccess point (e.g., a Wi-Fi access point), a low power node, a basetransceiver station (BTS), a transmission point or node, a remote REunit (RRU), a remote radio head (RRH), or other radio access node. Thenetwork node includes at least one transceiver 1110, processingcircuitry 1120, at least one memory 1130, and at least one networkinterface 1140. Transceiver 1110 facilitates transmitting wirelesssignals to and receiving wireless signals from a wireless device, suchas wireless devices 110 (e.g., via an antenna); processing circuitry1120 executes instructions to provide some or all of the functionalitydescribed above as being provided by a network node 120; memory 1130stores the instructions executed by processing circuitry 1120; andnetwork interface 1140 communicates signals to backend networkcomponents, such as a gateway, switch, router, Internet, Public SwitchedTelephone Network (PSTN), controller, and/or other network nodes 120.Processing circuitry 1120 and memory 1130 can be of the same types asdescribed with respect to processing circuitry 1020 and memory 1030 ofFIG. 12A above. Processing circuitry 1120 may perform any of the stepsof the method claims below.

In some embodiments, network interface 1140 is communicatively coupledto processing circuitry 1120 and refers to any suitable device operableto receive input for network node 120, send output from network node120, perform suitable processing of the input or output or both,communicate to other devices, or any combination of the preceding.Network interface 1140 includes appropriate hardware (e.g., port, modem,network interface card, etc.) and software, including protocolconversion and data processing capabilities, to communicate through anetwork. In particular embodiments, processing circuitry 1120 incommunication with transceiver 1110 communicates user data within acontrol resource region (e.g., CORESET).

Other embodiments of network node 120 include additional components(beyond those shown in FIG. 13A) responsible for providing certainaspects of the network node's functionality, including any of thefunctionality described above and/or any additional functionality(including any functionality necessary to support the solution describedabove). The various different types of network nodes may includecomponents having the same physical hardware but configured (e.g., viaprogramming) to support different radio access technologies, or mayrepresent partly or entirely different physical components.

FIG. 13B is a block diagram illustrating example components of a networknode 120. The components may include determining module 1150 andsignaling module 1152.

Determining module 1150 may perform the determining functions of networknode 120. For example, determining module 1150 may determine one or morecontrol resource regions for a carrier, determine a control channelregion in a first control resource region of the one or more controlresource regions, and determine a data transmission region in at leastone control resource region of the one or more control resource regions.Determining module 1150 may perform the determining functions accordingto any of the examples and embodiments described above (e.g., step1062-1066 of FIG. 1). In certain embodiments, determining module 1150may include or be included in processing circuitry 1120. In particularembodiments, determining module 1150 may communicate with signalingmodule 1152.

Signaling module 1152 may perform the signaling functions of networknode 120. For example, signaling module 1152 may signal the determineddata transmission region to a wireless device, according to any of theembodiments and examples described herein (e.g., step 1068 of FIG. 10).In certain embodiments, signaling module 1152 may include or be includedin processing circuitry 1120. In particular embodiments, signalingmodule 1152 may communicate with determining module 1150.

Modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to the systems andapparatuses disclosed herein without departing from the scope of theinvention. The components of the systems and apparatuses may beintegrated or separated. Moreover, the operations of the systems andapparatuses may be performed by more, fewer, or other components.Additionally, operations of the systems and apparatuses may be performedusing any suitable logic comprising software, hardware, and/or otherlogic. As used in this document, “each” refers to each member of a setor each member of a subset of a set.

Modifications, additions, or omissions may be made to the methodsdisclosed herein without departing from the scope of the invention. Themethods may include more, fewer, or other steps. Additionally, steps maybe performed in any suitable order.

Although this disclosure has been described in terms of certainembodiments, alterations and permutations of the embodiments will beapparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the above descriptionof the embodiments does not constrain this disclosure. Other changes,substitutions, and alterations are possible without departing from thespirit and scope of this disclosure, as defined by the claims below.

Abbreviations used in the preceding description include:

3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project

ACK Acknowledgement

BLER Block Error Rate

BTS Base Transceiver Station

CRC Cyclic Redundancy Check

CSI Channel State information

D2D Device to Device

DCI Downlink Control Information

DL Downlink

DMRS Demodulation Reference Signal

ePDCCH enhanced Physical Downlink Control Channel

eNB eNodeB

FDD Frequency Division Duplex

HARQ Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request

LTE Long Term Evolution

M2M Machine to Machine

MAC Medium Access Control

MCS Modulation and Coding Scheme

MIMO Multi-Input Multi-Output

MTC Machine Type Communication

NAK Negative Acknowledgement

NR New Radio

OFDM Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex

PDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel

PDSCH Physical Downlink Shared Channel

PMI Precoding Matrix Indicator

PRB Physical Resource Block

PUCCH Physical Uplink Control Channel

PUSCH Physical Uplink Shared Channel

RAN Radio Access Network

RAT Radio Access Technology

RB Resource Block

RBS Radio Base Station

RE Resource Element

RI Rank Index

RNC Radio Network Controller

RRC Radio Resource Control

RRH Remote Radio Head

RRU Remote Radio Unit

RS Reference Signal

SC-FDMA Single Carrier-Frequency Division Multiple Access

TDD Time Division Duplex

TTI Transmission Time interval

UCI Uplink Control Information

UE User Equipment

UL Uplink

UTRAN Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

WAN Wireless Access Network

The invention claimed is:
 1. A network node comprising processingcircuitry, the processing circuitry operable to: determine one or morecontrol resource regions for a carrier, wherein each control resourceregion of the one or more control resource regions comprises a set oftime and frequency resources; determine a data transmission region in atleast one control resource region of the one or more control resourceregions; and send a signal to a wireless device, the signal indicatingresources from the one or more control resource regions that areexcluded from the data transmission region, wherein the signal includesa bitmap and the bitmap indicates at least one of one or more groups oftime and frequency resources excluded from the data transmission.
 2. Amethod in a wireless device, the method comprising: receiving a signalfrom a network node indicating resources from one or more controlresource regions excluded for data transmission, wherein the signalincludes a bitmap and the bitmap indicates at least one of one or moregroups of time and frequency resources excluded from the datatransmission; and performing one of receiving and transmitting databased on the received signal.
 3. The method of claim 2, furthercomprising receiving a control channel that includes control informationthat indicates a set of time and frequency resources allocated for thewireless device.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the allocated set oftime and frequency resources comprises a subset of resources in the oneor more control resource regions.
 5. The method of claim 3, wherein theallocated set of time and frequency resources excludes one of resourcesused for a control channel and resources outside of the one or morecontrol resource regions.
 6. The method of claim 3, wherein theallocated set of time and frequency resources comprises resource withinthe one or more control resource regions and resources outside of anycontrol resource regions.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein a frequencyrange of the resources within the one or more control resource regionsis one of the same as a frequency range of the resources outside of theone or more control resource regions and different than a frequencyrange of the resources outside of the one or more control resourceregions.
 8. The method of claim 3, wherein the allocated set of time andfrequency resources comprises all resources in the one or more controlresource regions.
 9. The method of claim 2, wherein the one or morecontrol resource regions comprise a control resource set (CORESET), andthe signal comprises a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH).
 10. Awireless device comprising processing circuitry, the processingcircuitry operable to: receive a signal from a network node indicatingresources from one or more control resource regions excluded for datatransmission, wherein the signal includes a bitmap and the bitmapindicates at least one of one or more groups of time and frequencyresources excluded from the data transmission; and perform one ofreceiving and transmitting data based on the received signal.
 11. Thewireless device of claim 10, wherein the processing circuitry isconfigured to further receive a control channel that includes controlinformation that indicates a set of time and frequency resourcesallocated for the wireless device.
 12. The wireless device of claim 11,wherein the allocated set of time and frequency resources comprises asubset of the resources in the one or more control resource regions. 13.The wireless device of claim 11, wherein the allocated set of time andfrequency resources excludes one of resources used for a control channeland resources outside of the one or more control resource regions. 14.The wireless device of claim 11, wherein the allocated set of time andfrequency resources comprises resources within the one or more controlresource regions and resources outside of any control resource regions.15. The wireless device of claim 14, wherein a frequency range of theresources within the one or more control resource regions is one of thesame as a frequency range of the resources outside of the one or morecontrol resource regions and different than a frequency range of theresources outside of the one or more control resource regions.
 16. Thewireless device of claim 11, wherein the allocated set of time andfrequency resources comprises all resources in the control resourceregions.
 17. The wireless device of claim 10, wherein the one or morecontrol resource regions comprise a control resource set (CORESET), andthe signal comprises a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). 18.The wireless device of claim 10, wherein the resources excluded for thedata transmission includes resources that overlap with control resourceregions of other wireless devices.